Americans: U.S. Transit Attack Inevitable

[Eugene]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5142692,00.html

Americans: U.S. Transit Attack Inevitable

Friday July 15, 2005 7:46 AM

By WILL LESTER

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Most Americans think a terrorist attack on a train,
bus or subway in the United States is inevitable, but there's no
evidence they are any more fearful about their own safety after the
London bombings, an AP-Ipsos poll found.

Public approval of President Bush's handling of terrorism and foreign
policy ticked up slightly after the attacks in England renewed focus
on the president's strongest issue - fighting terrorism. But his
overall job approval rating remains in the doldrums- at 42 percent
in the AP-Ipsos poll taken Monday through Wednesday.

Almost six in 10 Americans, 57 percent, say they think a terrorist
attack on a bus, train or subway will occur at some point, while just
over a third say such an attack can be prevented.

more...

[MercutioATC]

1. That makes sense...the odds are still very good.

Hell, the skies were safe on 9/11.

We had 4500 planes in the air and lost 4. While that's a lot more than we usually lose, it's still less than one tenth of one percent.

I wouldn't be "fearful" with those odds.

[Carolab]

2. London was a "trial balloon".

Something just big enough to test the waters. And right when "Patriot Act" is being rewritten/reconsidered. How obvious.

[Judi Lynn]

6. You might remember before 9-11, right-wingnuts took it into their heads

to gibber the peculiar remark obsessively, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Maybe it was made popular by their nasty right-wingding hate radio shows.

I think _Bush and his cluster of psychopaths believe they are losing their choke hold on the country, and need to give us all a damned good scare to get everyone into line again. What could be more predictable than a new "attack?"



All praise _Bush, hallelujah.

[amber dog democrat]

8. The Chimp would make 9/11 into a Hallmark Holiday

if he could.

[AndyTiedye]

3. Most Americans Never Take Public Transportation Anyway

[lumpy]

4. My goodness Andy

where do you live? In the boondocks?

[ogradda]

5. O dear.

Pierce/King county has MASS people who use public transportation. There's tons of us.

[AndyTiedye]

9. A Lot of People Use Public Transit When It is Frequent and Reliable

Unfortunately, most places have pitiful public transit,
and many have none at all.

We need to improve public transportation so that people don't have
to drive so much. We need to tackle the problem of suburban public
transportation. Being able to take bicycles on to trains and buses
helps a lot there. Small, short-range electric vehicles could also.

[amber dog democrat]

7. i don't think there is any way to make a railroad safe

Accidents alone happens every year in routine passenger and freight operations.

With thousands of miles of unguarded tracks and switches anyone could plan an attack. There are scores of incidents where simple tampering causes problems

. I don't even think the larger roads have digital radio communiation, so anyone could listen into dispatcing and operational traffic for some information on how railroads work...not that I honestly think that would help them much, but if you are on the head end of a locomotive in dark teritory running as say 40 , 45 mph, you'd be on top of a switch lined against you before you could verify the target or points - and don't even think about being able to stop. And i don't know how the railroads or the FRA could act to prevent it.